Beware of Greeks Bearing Gifts
by LanieSullivan
Summary: In response to a challenge by Whitefeather1965: CHALLENGE - Write a story which contains this dialogue: "I said we're safer, not safe." Word limit 1000 or less. Extended tag for "The Khrushchev List," and a tiny bit of a follow-up to my Dotty-centric piece, "No Reason."


Lee glanced at his wife sheepishly after her "better be a long list" comment, with her half-teasing, half-cocky smile as if she had some secret joke in her head that he didn't know the punch-line to, making him not quite sure if he was out of the doghouse yet. Thinking that he'd best do a bit more groveling, he held the list up and began, "So, on this list-" but he was cut off my Amanda's finger on his lips and a shake of her head. He Glanced at her quizzically.

Off Lee's befuddled look, Amanda replied, "Forget the list."

More confused than ever and looking a bit hurt, Lee queried, "You don't wanna' read it? I put a lot of thought into this...a lot more than I did the first one."

Amanda nodded with a warm smile and answered, "I know you did, Sweetheart, and I want to read it. I _will_ read it, I promise, but we need to have a serious talk first." She took the list from him, tossed it onto the coffee table, took both of her hands in his and gestured to the sofa. "Let's go sit down together, okay?"

"Okay-ay," he agreed dubiously, his brow furrowed in concern now at the seriousness of her tone. He relaxed a bit once they had sat down together and she cuddled up to him, draping her legs across his lap and resting her hands on his chest as had become her habit.

Out of his own habit, he slid his hands to her waist and looked into her eyes searching for any sign of what was going on in her head. Finding just a nervous look, he asked, "Amanda, what is it?"

"There's...uh...there's something...something..." she hedged, "something that I've needed to tell you for a while now and every time that I try, something always happens that I can't. We were supposed to have some time together, but then Dr. Smyth put you on that assignment with Elisa Danton and I...I just chickened out after I met her and saw how beautiful and glamorous she was-"

"Hey," he interjected gently. "women like that don't mean anything to me anymore."

"I know, I know, but it bothered me more than I thought it would, so then I had set up this whole romantic weekend with the beef wellington and it was

supposed to be just the two of us and that got ruined and then you and Francine got framed for treason so that was a really bad time to give you this kind of news. Then you were all worried about her because of her ex and Brody and you were so, so upset about Sally Wong and Peters that I just _couldn't_ tell you at that time."

"Amanda..."

"Now, mother knows and you don't and I feel just awful about it, but I swear I didn't tell her...she just...she just knew and she confronted me on it...and I just...I just couldn't lie to her anymore. She knows we're married too and I didn't tell her that either, but she said she's known since California because she overheard you and the sheriff talking."

"What?"

"She said she'll break the news to the boys for us, since the truth is going to have to come out anyway, but I did swear her to secrecy about the other news because you didn't know yet and I wanted you to hear it from me not her, so she decided to take the boys to the mountains this weekend so that we'd have some time alone, but Friday night when I got here, it had been so long that we...well you know what happened...we spent the whole night in bed...then when she called here and found out that I still hadn't told you, she said she'd keep them there another day, but insisted that I tell you right away."

"Amanda, slow down...please..." Lee tried to interrupt.

"So, I got up early the next day to make you that big breakfast hoping that we could sit down together and have a nice long talk, but then you seemed bothered that I did it and we had our little spat, which is mostly my fault because I'm overly sensitive these days and you'd have had no way to know that since I haven't told you the reason behind it and that is...that I...I'm pregnant."

The room was filled with an eerie silence for a moment as Lee's eyes widened in shock as he took in everything that Amanda had just told him. Dotty knew they were married, was telling or had already, told the boys and his wife was pregnant. "Wha-? Uh...When? How?" he sputtered and regretted his reaction instantly at her saddened look. "I-I...Uh...I didn't mean it like that." He gave her a reassuring smile as he lightly caressed her face. I'm happy...I'm just surprised."

"I was too," Amanda confessed. "On the when, I'm not quite sure, but I think it was shortly before I had my stitches removed...you remember that I was taking all those antibiotics to keep them from getting infected and how the doctor told me that might stop my pill from working?"

"I remember," Lee acknowledged with a nod. "I also remember _someone_ ," he gave her a pointed look, "coming here with a box of condoms once she was released for that particular activity and telling me we'd be safe."

Amanda shook her head, "Now, that is not what I said."

"No?"

"Mm-mm," she shook her head again. "If you think back, you'll recall that I said we're safer, not safe. Other than going without, there is no way to be entirely safe and with my long recovery time, I don't think either of us wanted to go without any longer."

Lee laughed and pulled her closer. "I never can argue with your logical mind."

"That better be one of the things on the list, Buddy," she quipped and kissed him soundly.


End file.
